Snap-in fluorescent lampholders with quick-connect terminals



Nov. 7, 1967 .1. M. PISTEY CRESCENT LAMPHOLDERS WITH QUICKCONNECT TERMINALS SNAP-IN FLU 3 Sheds-Sheet Filed March 31, 1964 I i l IHIII l INVENTOR. fa/72? M Ra's tag,

7, 1967 J. M. PISTEY ,351,883

SNAP-JIM FLUORESCENT LAMPHOLDERS WITH QUICK-CONNECT TERMINALS Filed March 31, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 llllllllllllllllll lllllllllllv INVENTOR. J'ofiw M F /stey,

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.1. M. PISTEY SNAP-IN FLUORESCENT LAMPHOLDERS WITH Nov. 7, 1967 QUICK-CONNECT TERMINALS Filed March 31, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 United States Patent 3,351,883 SNAP-IN FLUORESCENT LAMPHOLDERS WITH QUICK-CONNECT TERMINALS John M. Pistey, Fairfield, Conn, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Filed Mar. 31, 1964, Ser. No. 356,272 6 Claims. (Cl. 339-52) cludes a compressible contact-positioning plunger and the other lampholder of the pair has a stationary contactpositioning member. The use of screws and nuts for mounting this type of fluorescent lampholders not only increases the number of lampholder parts but it entails an additional material and labor cost which it would be advantageous for the fixture manufacturers to eliminate.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of my invention to provide a new and improved type of lampholder of simplified construction with an integral means for simply and expeditiously fastening the lampholder to a panel.

A further object of my invention is to provide a new and improved lampholder structure having a simplified overall construction, pressure-locking terminals and snapin mounting characteristics to enable the lampholders to be quickly and easily mounted and dismounted.

It is another object of my invention to provide such lampholders having parts that are easily and inexpensively manufactured and assembled with a minimum of materials being consumed thus providing low manufacturing costs.

Still another object of my invention is to provide lampholders which are extremely flexible in application and inexpensive to install and to service.

In carrying out one aspect of my invention, in one form 'thereof, I have provided a lampholder adapted to be mounted in a supporting panel having an aperture in it and at least one notch in the periphery of the aperture. The lampholder has a body with a reduced body portion dimensioned to pass through the panel aperture and a flange portion dimensioned to engage against the face of the panel to limit the passage of the lampholder into the aperture and to cover the edges of the aperture providing an attractive appearance. At least one resiliently biased arm is secured to the reduced portion of the lampholders body. When the lampholder is mounted in the panel this arm is aligned with the panel notch and the lampholder is inserted in the panel with the arm passing through the notch. The arm has a shoulder portion adjacent to one of its ends located outwardly away from the reduced portion of the body. The end of the arm adjacent to the shoulder portion remains within the confines of the panel notch when the lampholder is fully seated in the panel thus facilitating the extraction of the lampholder from the panel at some later time if desired. This prevents the arm from binding behind the panel and making the extraction of the lampholder from the front face of the panel difficult.

A preferred lampholder construction embodying the foregoing aspect of my invention incorporates two substantially identical, opposed, resiliently biased arms. This lampholder with two arms is utilized in panels having apertures with two notches properly aligned for receipt of the two opposed arms. This form is the one shown in the drawings and it provides the advantages of a better balance in the forces of the resiliently biased arms and a more accurate and stable aligning of the lampholder within the panel aperture.

By further aspects of my invention, I have provided an aligning rib for each of the resiliently biased arms, each rib having a guide channel for receiving the associated arm. Further, I have provided a pryout notch in the flange portion of the lampholder body for each of the arms, facilitating the removal of a lampholder from its mounted position within a panel.

By another aspect of my invention, I have provided an improved lampholder housing and contact arrangement including a movable plunger contact positioning member. This arrangement may, of course, be combined with the aforesaid lampholder mounting structure with particular advantage to provide a very desirable lampholder.

By a still further aspect of my invention, I have provided an improved lampholder housing and contact arrangement for a lampholder wherein a relatively sta- 'tionary contact positioning member is employed. This arrangement may be advantageously combined with the previously discussed lampholder mounting structure and the improved movable plunger lampholder to provide a completely new and improved lampholder set for use in a lighting fixture.

By a further aspect of my invention, the conductor receiving slots of the new and improved stationary lampholder are formed through the side wall of the main housing member, comprising open sided recesses in the rear edge of the side wall. A panel closing member closes the cavity in the main housing member and forms a rear Wall for each slot thus enclosing the slots so that each forms a passageway with encircling walls.

The main housing and the rear panel or cover of the stationary lampholder are preferably secured together by resiliently biased arms which are also effective to mount the stationary lampholder in a mounting panel in the same manner described above for the movable or plunger end lampholder. Each arm has an intermediate portion secured to the main housing member, one end engaged against the cover member to secure it in position, and the other end arranged to be engaged within a mounting notch in the panel.

The subject matter which I regard as my invention is' particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. My invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may be best understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view showing a set of panel mounted lampholders embodying my invention and a fluorescent lamp disposed in engagement with these lampholders;

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the lampholders and the ends of the lamp of FIG. 1, partly in section with the base at the right end of the lamp partly withdrawn from its lampholder;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary plan view of a fixture panel which includes an aperture wherein the lampholders of the present invention may be effectively and removably seated without requiring the use of any supplemental hardware;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the lampholder of FIG. 1 for the high voltage end of the lamp, this lampholder having a movable plunger;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the lampholder of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the lampholder of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an exploded View of the lampholder of FIG. 4, with the insulating body partially broken away to show the interior structure thereof;

FIG. 8 is a front view of the base member of the lampholder body of FIG. 7, looking into the recessed chamber,

and showing one terminal element seated in the body and one terminal element removed;

FIG. 9 is a rear view of the cover member of the lampholder body of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a front view of the lampholder of FIG. 1 for the low voltage end of the lamp, this lampholder having a stationary contact positioning member;

FIG. 11 is a rear view of the lampholder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a side elevational view of the lampholder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a rear view of the main body member of the lampholder of FIG. 10, looking into the recessed chamber of the body, and showing one contact seated and one contact removed; and

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the lampholder of FIG. 10.

Referring first to FIG. 1 of the drawings, there is shown a double-ended fluorescent lamp 1 of a conventional type. The lamp 1 is supported at opposite ends between a pair of lampholders 2 and 3 which are constructed in accordance with my invention. The lampholders 2 and 3 are removably secured to opposed panels 4 of a suitable support 5 which is part of a lighting fixture.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lamp 1 has a tubular glass envelope 6 provided with bases 7 and 8 at its respective ends. The lampholder 2 is provided with a movable spring biased contact positioning plunger 9 for en- .gagement by base 7 of the lamp, and the lampholder 3 provides a stationary contact positioning means for engagement by base 8 of the lamp. The structure of the lampholders 2 and 3 shall be discussed in detail hereinafter. To mount lamp 1 in the lampholders 2 and 3, the base 7 of the lamp is first engaged with plunger 9 of lampholder 2 and the lamp is then moved to the left (viewing FIG. 1) to force the plunger 9 into the lampholder 2 until the lamp base 8 can clear the lampholder 3, as shown in broken lines in FIG. 1. The lamp 1 is then brought into line with the lampholder 3 and the base 8 of the lamp is engaged therewith. The lamp is held firmly in the lampholders 2 and 3 by the spring biased plunger 9. Removal of the lamp from the lampholders is accomplished by moving it to the left (viewing FIG. 1) until the lamp base 8 is withdrawn from lampholder 3, tilting the lamp to clear the lampholder 3, and then withdrawing base 7 from plunger 9 of lampholder 2.

The lamp bases 7 and 8 are of identical structure and, therefore, for conciseness in description, the internal parts of only the base 7 have been shown completely in FIG. 2 of the drawings. Because the lamp is of a type well known in the art, additional description of the internal lamp parts will not be given here. Further description is given in my copending application, Ser. No. 179,135, filed Mar. 12, 1962, now U.S. Patent No. 3,245,626 entitled Snap-In Fluorescent Lampholders With Quick-Connect Terminals, which is assigned to the same assignee as the present invention. Of course, the lampholders of the present invention are adaptable for use with other similar types of lamps.

Turning now to the more detailed discussion of the structure of the lampholders 2 and 3, attention is again directed to FIGS. 1 and 2. The lampholder 2, which is shown at the left in FIGS. 1 and 2, includes an insulating body orhousing 10 having a base member 11 and a cover member 12. The plunger 9, which is also formed of insulating material, is telescopically arranged within the housing 16 for in and out reciprocation.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 7 and 8, the base member can be seen to have a cavity 13 formed therein. This cavity has a shelf 14 and a circular recess 15 which extends into the base member below the level of the shelf. The shelf 14 of the cavity has a plurality of terminal member engaging ribs or walls 16 which are arranged to engage the pressure locking section 17 of the seated terminal member in FIG. 8. Two opposed grooves 19 are formed on opposite sides of the cavity and these grooves extend from the shelf level to the bottom of the recess 15. The legs 20 of the terminal members 18 are received, respectively, in the grooves 19. Each of the terminal members 18 has a transverse section 21 disposed at the bottom of the recess, and the inner end of each section 21 is annular in form and is located around a positioning stud 23 formed on the base.

A plurality of conductor receiving passageways 24 open through a wall of the base member 11 to the shelf level of the cavity, as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 8. The pressure locking sections 17 of the terminal members 18 each have two tongues 25 which respectively extend across the inner end of one of the passageways 24 and terminate adjacent a wall of the cavity 13 (see FIG. 8.). The terminal members 18 are formed of electrically conductive resilient material, and when a conductor (not shown) is inserted through a passageway 24 it pushes one of the tongues 25 aside, pushing on past the end of the tongue. The pressure locking section is firmly held by the ribs 16 and so the tongue, as it is pushed aside by the conductor, resiliently bears against the conductor. Thus the conductor is locked into both physical and electrical engagement with the terminal member by being sandwiched between the tongue and a wall of the cavity. If a force is subsequently applied to extract the conductor it will be impinged against the free end of the tongue which will result in a strong resistance to such extraction.

An unlocking slot 26 opens through the outer wall of the base member adjacent to and parallel with the conductor receiving passageway 24. The slot opens adjacent to a terminal tongue 25 providing an access opening for the insertion of a tool (not shown) against the tongue to depress the tongue and unlock a conductor from engagement by the tongue so that the conductor may be more easily withdrawn.

Looking at FIG. 4, a conductor accommodating groove 27 may be seen. Groove 27 is formed in the outside wall of the base member. The conductors can be pressed into the grooves 27 so that they will be flush with the outer side wall of the housing. This aids in passing the lampholder 3 through a panel aperture with the conductors secured to the lampholder by the respective tongues 25.

Looking once again at FIGS. 7 and 8, two ribs 28 may be seen formed in opposite outside walls of the base member 11. A channel 29 is formed in each rib with a fastener receiving passageway 30 opening through the bottom wall 31 of the base member into each of the channels 29. A registration recess 32 is formed in the rear wall 31 about the fastener receiving passageway 30, as seen in FIGS. 6 and 7.

Looking now more particularly at FIGS. 7 and 9, the cover member 12 of lampholder 2 may be seen to have a flange portion 33 and a reduced lower portion 34 having two legs 35 aligned and dimensioned for receipt in the channels 29 of the base member for assembly of the housing 10.

Two ribs 36 are formed on the outside of the cover member 12. These two ribs extend from the flange 33 on opposite sides of the cover 12, and they are aligned and dimensioned to form with the ribs 28 on the base housing member 11, two continuous ribs 37 on the outside of the housing when the cover housing member 12 is assembled on the base housing member 11 as seen in FIG. 4. Shallow channels 38 of the depth seen inf FIGS. 2 and 6 extend from the flange 33 of the cover toward the back of the housing within the ribs 37 when the two parts are assembled. It may be seen that the two deep channels 29 of the base serve both as a means for receiving and positioning the legs 35 and as respective portions of the two shallow channels 38 when the housing 10 is assembled.

Looking now at FIGS. 2 and 7, two pryout notches 39 may be seen formed in the flange 33. These pryout notches are aligned with and open into the channels 38. The cross sectional dimensions of the channels 38 and of the pryout notches 39 are the same in my embodiment shown in the drawings and so the channels and the pryout notches form in effect continuous channels extending into the lower edge of the flange 33.

The cover member 12, as may be seen in FIGS. 7 and 9, has a plunger receiving opening 41. This opening extends through housing member 12 in alignment with the recess 15 in the base housing member 11 when the housing is assembled. In the assembled housing the opening 41 and the recess 15, therefore, form one continuous cylindrical channel. Two opposed grooves 42 are formed in the sides of the opening 41 in the cover member in alignment with the grooves 19 in the base member so that two continuous grooves are formed in the sides of the continuous channel formed by the assembled housing members. Two lugs 43 may be seen in FIG. 9 located on the rear surface of the cover. These lugs engage against the side walls of the cavity 13 of the base member above portions of the ribs 16 to increase the positive registration and engagement of the cover member 12 on the base member 11.

The plunger 9 has two ears 44 which are respectively received in the continuous grooves 19-42 in the housing 10. The plunger 9 as seen in FIGS. 2, 5 and 7 has a shallow recessed face 45 with a deep oval recess 46 in its center for receiving the lamp pins or contacts. A contact insulating post 47 is positioned in the center of the deep oval recess to separate the lampholder contacts 48 which project through the two slots 49. The two slots 49 open into the oval recess 46 from two spring receiving bores 50 (FIG. 2). These two spring aligning bores 50 open from the rear of the plunger and extend into the plunger to the partitioning wall 51. One end of each spring 52 is positioned on a respective stud 23 of the base 12 and against the section 21 of one of the terminal members 17. The other end of each spring 52 is positioned in a respective one of the spring aligning bores 50 and engaged on a respective contact shank 53. Each spring is made from a resilient electrically conducting material and thus the springs form the electrical connection between the contacts 48 and the terminals 18. Each contact is biased against the partition wall 51 by its respective spring with the embossment 54 engaging against the wall 51 and limiting the contacts projection through the slot. The two springs 52 bias their respective contacts outwardly through the slots 49 for engagement by a lamp 1 and thereby bias the plunger outwardly. The springs allow the plunger to be moved inwardly when a lamp is installed in a lighting fixture as previously described.

Turning now to a detailed discussion of another important aspect of my invention, I will describe the means whereby the lampholder 2 is mounted in the panel 4.

.Looking at FIG. 6, the inner ends or flanges of a pair of .mounting arms 55 may be seen positioned in recesses 32.

A separate fastener 56 passes through the aperture 57 (FIG. 7) .in each arms 55 and through a respective passageway 30 in the base member (FIG. 8) into a bore 58 in one of the legs 35 of the cover housing member 12 '(FIG. 9). I have chosen fasteners of a threaded type and I have provided mating threads in the bores 58. The fasteners 56 assemble the arms to the housing and they also secure the base housing member to the cover housing member. Each of the two arms 55 extends outwardly at an angle from the reduced portion of the housing and each is biased to a normal position as shown in FIG. 4. By way of example, I have made my arms of the resilient material spring steel. Each arm has a V-shaped shoulder portion 59 and free end 60 (FIG. 7). It can be seen that the outer surface of each shoulder 59 adjacent the free end 60 has striations running across it. These aid in providing a firm no-slip engagement of the shoulder against the rear edge of a panel. This is particularly true if the panel is metal and has a sharp edge which can engagedirectly in one of the striations. It can be observed in FIG. 6 that the arms 55, the continuous ribs 37 and the continuous channels 38 are in aligment with one another.

The lampholder 2 is suitably dimensioned to be removably mounted in a panel such as the panel 4 in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3. The panel 4, as seen in FIG. 3, has an aperture 61 with two notches 62 in its periphery. The inner or reduced portion of the housing 10 is dimensioned to pass through the aperture 61 and the flange portion 33 is dimensioned so that it will not pass through the aperture. The two lampholder ribs 37 are angularly positioned and dimensioned to pass through the notches 62. The aperture 61 is preferably formed with the burr on the rear face of the panel so that the flange 33 will fit flush against the face of the panel when the lampholder is mounted in the panel.

I have shown my lampholders mounted in relatively thin mounting panels in FIGS. 1 and 2. Of course, in certain embodiments they can be mounted in thick mounting panels without departing from my invention. When the lampholder 2 is mounted in a relatively thin mounting panel as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the V-shaped shoulder portions 59 of the arms 55 are preferably so formed that they extend away from the reduced portion of the housing and project behind the panel 4 with their forward extremities being engaged within the notches 62 themselves. The forward edge of the free end of each of the two spring arms is sufiiciently forward in its respective panel notch 62 when the lampholder is fully mounted, to be exposed, as shown in FIG. 2, for engagement by a tool inserted in the pryout notch 39. This arrangement enables the lampholder to be easily removed from in front of the panel. A tool may be inserted in the pryout notch to bear against the free end 60 of an arm 55 and push the arm inwardly toward the lampholder body to relieve the outward spring pressure of the arm. Any pointed tool such as the screw driver blade shown in dotted lines engaged in the lower pryout notch of the lampholder 2 in FIG. 2 would be satisfactory for this purpose. Then the lampholder may be easily withdrawn from the panel.

From viewing FIGS. 1, 2 and 6 it will be understood that the lampholder 2 is readily snapped into engagement in the panel aperture '61 from the right side or front face of the panel 4. To mount the lampholder in the panel it is necessary to align the ribs 37 with the panel notches 62 (FIG. 3) and then press the lampholder through the aperture with a sufiicient pressure to compress the resiliently biased spring arms 55 toward the reduced body portion and into the channels 38 so that the spring arms will ride through the panel notches 62. The spring arms are continuously biased to their norm-a1 positions and so when the flange 33 engages against the front face of the panel 4 the spring arms are resiliently engaged against the walls of the notch and retain the lampholder 2 firmly and securely in the panel 4. In particular, the shoulder portions 59 engage the rear edges of the notches to perform this function.

The spring arms 55 must be sufficiently short so that their compression into the channels 38 when mounting the lampholder 2 within the panel will not damage them by crumpling them against the back face of the flange 33. They must also be sutficiently long so that their ends 60 will be retained in the panel notches 62 when the lampholder is completely seated. If the ends 60 spring out wholly behind the panel 4 when the lampholder is being mounted they will engage behind the panel and become more or less locked in behind the panel. Then it is very difl'icult to extract the lampholder from the front face of the panel. In fact it can be seen that if such an outward springing of the arms occurs it would be necessary to practically rip the arms off or at least bend them completely backwards in order to withdraw the lampholder from the front of the panel without getting behind the panel itself. The outwardly formed V shape of the shoulders 59 aids in the easy removal of the lampholder by camming the arm downwardly as the lampholder is pulled outwardly through the aperture if the arm is not held wholly down by a tool inserted through the pryout notch.

' For many lampholder applications, such as for example the arrangement shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, it is important that the lampholders be mounted with their contacts arranged in predetermined angular positions and that the lampholder be mounted in the panel in such a manner that it will not rotate to mis-align the contacts. To expeditiously accomplish this the ribs 37 are dimensioned so that they will fit snugly against the Walls of the notches 62. Thus while the arms 55 retain the lampholder within the panel, the ribs 37 angularly register the lampholder within the panel and prevent any subsequent rotation of the lampholder.

It will be seen that I have provided a very desirable degree of stability for my lampholder when it is mounted in the panel by providing two opposed spring arms 55 and ribs 37 on opposite sides of my lampholder to secure the lampholder in position. However, it is understood that other arrangements might be desirable in certain situations. For example, one of the ribs 37 and one of the spring arms 55 might be eliminated in certain applications and the lampholder could still be operably mounted in a panel. Also the angle between the ribs might be varied in certain applications.

An additional aspect of my lampholder 2 is the small number of separate parts (thirteen in all) utilized in its construction. Also, attention is called to the fact that the three insulating housing members which I have chosen to mold from a thermosetting plastic material have straightline slots and recesses that open directly from the front or the back of the respective part and walls that are 'formed without any overhang, looking at the members as seen in FIGS. 5, 6, 8 and 9. The single exception to this is the four conductor receiving passageways 21 in the base housing member 11. The three molded members are, of course, the plunger 9, the base housing member 11 and the cover housing member 12. In my arrangement these three members are readily formed by molding at a Very reasonable cost and they interfit to provide a sturdy and long lasting lampholder with the other ten parts.

Turning now to a detailed discussion of the noncompressible or fixed-end type lampholder 3, attention is directed to the right side of FIGS. 1 and 2. The lampholder 3 is similar to the previously described lampholder 2 in that it includes similar means for mounting the lampholder in the opposing panel 4 of the lighting fixture. However, the lampholder 3 differs from lampholder 2 in that it is of smaller construction and includes even fewer parts. More particularly, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 14, the lampholder 3 comprises a relatively shallow insulating housing 68 comprised of a main member 69 and a closing panel member 70. The main housing or 'body member has a reduced portion 71 and a flange portion 72 as does the housing of lampholder 2. Also the main housing member 69 has two ribs 73 having channels 74 formed in them. Two pryout notches 75 are formed in the flange 72 facing the reduced portion and opening into a respective one of the channels. The pryout notches 75 and the channels 74 have the same cross sectional dimensions in my embodiment shown in the drawings so that the channels and the pryout notches form, in effect, a continuous channel. This may best be seen in FIGS. 14 and 2. A cavity 76 is formed in the main housing or body member 69 and this cavity contains a plurality of contact engaging Walls 77, see FIGS. 13 and 14. A pair of contacts 78 may be seen, each having a terminal section 79, a connecting leg 80 and a lamp contacting portion 81. I have formed my contacts from an electrical conducting resilient metal. The contacts are positioned in the cavity and operably engaged by the contact engaging walls or ribs 77, see FIGS. 13 and 14. The lamp contacting portion of each of the contacts 78 extends through a respective contact exposing slot 82 opening through the partition 83 from the cavity into a deep recess 84, see FIG. 10. The deep recess 84 is formed as an extension of a shallow recess 85 in the front face or flange portion 72 of the main body member 69. A center post 86 insulates the contacts 78 from one another and provides a back-up Wall against which the resilient contact portions 81 may be pressed to assure a good contact engagement and wiping action with the contacts of a lamp 1 installed in the lampholders as previously described and as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The conductor receiving slots 87 formed in the main housing member may be seen in FIGS. 12, 13 and 14. They extend through the side wall of the main housing member at the rear thereof. The conductor slots 87 are closed from the rear of the main housing member by the panel 70, as seen in FIG. 12. The pressure locking terminal sections 79 of the contacts 78 each include two tongues 88 respectively positioned across the cavity end of one of the conductor receiving passageways or slots 87 and located adjacent one wall of the enclosed cavity 76 in the assembled lampholder 3. Each of the tongues 88 is resilient and operates to sandwich an inserted conductor against the adjacent cavity wall to lock the conductor in engagement with the terminal.

It may be desirable at times to disconnect one or all of the conductors from the lampholder to service a lamp fixture or for other reasons. Therefore, an unlocking slot 89 is provided through the wall of the main housing member adjacent each of the conductor receiving slots. Each unlocking slot opens to a tongue and makes it possible to insert a tool against the tongue to relieve the resilient pressure of the tongue on the conductor. This facilitates the removal of the conductor from the conductor slot.

Looking in particular at FIGS. 13 and 14 it can be seen that not only does lampholder 3 have a small number of parts (eight in all) but the main body portion is particularly suitable for a very simple molding operation. Notice that all of the slots open from the front or rear of the member and are straight-line in form. Also all of the walls are formed so that there is no overhang looking up or down at the member as seen in FIGS. 10 and 13. Although the main body member could be made in some other way I have chosen to mold mine using a thermosetting plastic material. I have chosen to make my panel closing member 70 from an insulating sheet material. The panel not only closes the cavity and secures the contacts 78 in position but also completes the Walls of the conductor receiving slots and the unlocking slots.

Turning now to a detailed discussion of the means for mounting the lampholder in a panel 4 and for assembling the lampholder together it may be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 that the lampholder 3 is mounted in a manner corresponding to the manner in which lampholder 2 is mounted. Looking now particularly at FIG. 14 lamp- .holder 3 can be seen to have arms 90 which have intermediate portions 91 which respectively extend over the projections 92 of the main housing member 69. Apertures 93 are formed in the intermediate portions 91 of the arms and positioned to align with the bores 94 in the projections 92 when the lampholder 3 is assembled. Fasteners 95 are then inserted through the apertures 93 and secured in the bores 94 to secure the arms to the main housing member. One end 96 of each of the arms 90 has a foot portion 97 which bears against the panel member 70, as shown in FIGS. 2, 11 and 13, when the arms are assembled to the main housing member 69. Thus all of the members of lampholder 3 are secured in position by the two fasteners 95.

The other ends of the arms 90 extend toward the flange 72 and they are similar to the corresponding portions of arms 55 of lampholder 2. Each of the arms 90 extend outwardly at an angle from the reduced body portion 71 and each is biased to a normal position as shown in FIG. 12. Arms 90 may be made from the resilient material, spring steel as may arms 55. Each of the arms 90 has a V-shaped shoulder portion 98 and a free end 99. It can be observed in FIG. 11 that the arms 90, the ribs 73 and the channels 74 are in alignment with one another.

The lampholder 3 like the lampholder 2 is suitably dimensioned to be removably mounted in a panel such as the panel 4 in FIG. 3. As may be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 the lower or reduced portion of the housing 69 is dimensioned to pass through the aperture 61 and the flange 72 is dimensioned so that it will not pass through the aperture. The two lampholder ribs 73 are angularly positioned and dimensioned to pass through the notches 62. The functional aspects of lampholder 3 are the same as those of lampholder 2 so far as its being mounted and dismounted from the panel 4 is concerned and so these operations will not be discussed again. The spring arms 90 pass through panel notches 62, the shoulder portions 98 engage with the rear edges of the notches, and the ends 99 of the arms are retained in the panel notches when the lampholder is fully seated so that they can be engaged by a tool inserted through the pryout notches 75.

While in accordance with the patent statutes, I have described what at present is considered to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that numerous changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention and it is therefore aimed in the appended claims to cover all such equivalent variations as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a lampholder, a housing having a base member and a cover member, said base member having a cavity therein, at least one rib' on the outside of said base member and a channel formed in said rib, said cover member having an outer flange portion and a reduced inner portion, said reduced portion having a leg aligned with said rib and secured in said channel when said base and cover members are secured together, said cover member having a plunger receiving opening aligned with said cavity in said base and forming therewith a continuous plunger cavity, at least one rib on the outside of said cover member aligned with said rib on said base member, a channel in said rib of said cover member in alignment with said channel in said base member and extending to said flange of said cover member, a plunger reciprocally mounted in said continuous plunger cavity, contact means positioned by said plunger for engagement with a lamp, a resilent arm for mounting said lampholder received in said channels in the ribs of said cover member and said base member, and a fastener securing said base member to said cover member and attaching said resilient arm to said housing.

2. In a lampholder, a housing having a base member and a cover member, said base member having a cavity therein, said cavity having a shelf near its top and a plunger recess extending into said base and below said shelf, two opposed grooves in two opposed side walls of said cavity and extending from the shelf to the bottom of said recess, said cover housing member being secured to said base member, said cover member having an outer flange portion and a reduced lower portion, and said cover member having a plunger receiving opening extending through said flange portion in alignment with said recess in said base member and forming therewith a continuous plunger channel, two opposed grooves in the sides of said channel in said cover member and aligned with said grooves in said base member to form two continuous grooves, a plunger reciprocally mounted in said plunger channel, said plunger having two opposed ears with one ear engaged in each of said grooves to hold said plunger in alignment, contact means positioned by said plunger for engagement with a lamp, resilient means for biasing said contact means into engagement with said plunger and for biasing said plunger outwardly from said cavity and two terminal members mounted in said base member,

each of said terminal members including a section at the bottom of said plunger channel in said base member for connection to said contact means, said terminal members each including an upwardly extending leg in a respective one of said grooves in said base member, and a pressure locking section on said shelf of said cavity for resilient attachment to a conductor, each of said pressure, locking sections including at least one tongue, a plurality of conductor receiving passageways through the side wall of said housing and opening into the shelf of said cavity, each respective tongue positioned across the inner end of a respective passageway and located adjacent a wall of said cavity, each of said tongues being arranged to resiliently sandwich an inserted conductor against said last mentioned wall for locking the conductor in engagement with said terminal member.

3. In a lampholder, a housing having a base member and a cover member, said base member having a cavity therein, said cavity having a shelf near its entrance, a plurality of terminal member engaging ribs on the shelf of said cavity, said cavity having a plunger recess extending into said base and below the level of said shelf, two opposed grooves on opposite sides of said cavity and extending from the shelf to the bottom of said plunger recess, two ribs on the outside of said base member across from and aligned with said grooves, a channel formed in each rib, a fastener receiving passage opening through a bottom wall of said base member into each of said channels, said cover housing member having an outer flange portion and a reduced lower portion, said reduced portion having two legs, said legs aligned with a respective one of said ribs and secured in an associated one of said channels, said cover member having a plunger receiving cavity extending through said flange portion in alignment with said recess in said base member and forming therewith a continuous plunger accommodating cavity, two opposed grooves in the sides of said plunger accommodating cavity in said cover member and aligned with said grooves in said base member to form two continuous grooves, two ribs on the outside of said cover member across from and aligned with said grooves, a channel in each rib in alignment with said channel in said base member, said channel extending to said flange of said cover member, a separate pryout notch in said flange opening into and aligned with each of said channels, a plunger having two opposed ears and reciprocally mounted in said plunger accommodating cavity, one ear engaged in each of said grooves to hold said plunger in alignment, contact means positioned by said plunger for engagement with a lamp, two terminal members, each of said terminal members including a section connected to said contact means, said terminal members each including an upwardly extending leg in a respective one of said grooves in said base member, and a pressure locking section engaged by said terminal engaging ribs on the level of said shelf of said cavity for resilient attachment to a conductor, two resilient arms, each arm having one of its ends secured in a respective one of said recesses of said base member and secured therein, and two fasteners, said fasteners passing through respective arms and through a respective fastener receiving passageway in said base and into a leg of said cover member and securing the arms in position and said base and cover members together, each of said arms extending over a respective one of said channels in said base member toward said flange and terminating proximate to said flange in a free end aligned with a respective one of said notches, and each of said arms having an outwardly projecting shoulder portion between its ends, said shoulder portions normally extending outwardly beyond the edges of said ribs.

4. A lampholder for mounting in a supporting panel having an aperture therein, the lampholder comprising, a housing having a main member and a rear closure member, said main member having an outer flange portion dimensioned to engage said panel and a reduced rear portion dimensioned to pass through said aperture whereby said housing may be mounted in said aperture, said main member having opposed front and rear faces, a contact exposing recess in said front face of said main member, a cavity in said main member opening from said rear face of said main member, at least one contact exposing opening extending from said recess through the front face of said main member into said cavity, at least one contact positioned in said cavity and having a resilient section extending through said opening into said recess for engagement by a lamp, said contact being insertable into said cavity through the opening in the rear face of said main member and said contact having a rear edge located substantially flush with the rear face of said main housing member, said rear closure member being secured over said cavity thereby closing the opening in said rear face and holding said contact in place in said cavity, and means including a slot in a side face of said main member for connecting a conductor to said contact.

5. The lampholder for claim 4 wherein said means for connecting a conductor to said contact includes a pressure locking terminal section of said contact, said pressure locking section having at least one tongue positioned across the cavity end of said slot and located adjacent one wall of said cavity to resiliently sandwich an inserted conductor against said last mentioned wall for locking the conductor in engagement with said terminal section of said contact.

6. In a lampholder, a housing having a main member and a rear closure member, said main member having an outer flange portion and a reduced rear portion, a contact exposing recess in the front face of said main member, a cavity in said main member opening from the rear of said member, at least one contact exposing opening extending from said recess through the front wall of said main member into said cavity, at least one contact positioned in said cavity and having a section extending through said opening into said recess for engagement by a lamp, said contact being insertable into said cavity from the rear of said body and said contact having a rear edge located substantially flush with the rear Wall of said main housing member, said closing member being secured over said cavity and holding said contact in place in said cavity, and means including a slot in the side Wall of said main member for connecting a conductor to said contact, said closure member comprising a flat panel, and said conductor receiving slots being formed in the side wall of said main housing member and being closed from the rear of said main member by said flat panel, said main housing member further including a rib formed on the outside thereof, said rib extending rearwardly from the flange the length of the lampholder, a channel formed in said rib and extending the length of said rib, and a resilient arm, said arm having an intermediate portion secured to said main housing member, one end of said arm being engaged against said panel member securing it in postion and the other end of said arm extending over said channel and terminating proximate to said flange, and said arm having an outwardly projecting shoulder portion between said intermediate portion and its end proximate to said flange, said shoulder portion normally extending outwardly beyond the edges of said rib.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,663,895 12/1953 Petri 16-2 2,705,787 4/1955 Benander 339- X 2,774,949 12/1956 Cardani et a1. 339128 2,946,977 7/1960 Sheldon 339-95 3,060,399 10/1962 Pistey 339-53 MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner. ALFRED S. TMSK, Examiner. J. H. MCGLYNN, Assistant Examiner; 

1. IN A LAMPHOLDER, A HOUSING HAVING A BASE MEMBER AND A COVER MEMBER, SAID BASE MEMBER HAVING A CAVITY THEREIN, AT LEAST ONE RIB ON THE OUTSIDE OF SAID BASE MEMBER AND A CHANNEL FORMED IN SAID RIB, SAID COVER MEMBER HAVING AN OUTER FLANGE PORTION AND A REDUCED INNER PORTION, SAID REDUCED PORTION HAVING A LEG ALIGNED WITH SAID RIB AND SECURED IN SAID CHANNEL WHEN SAID BASE AND COVER MEMBERS ARE SECURED TOGETHER, SAID COVER MEMBER HAVING A PLUNGER RECEIVING OPENING ALIGNED WITH SAID CAVITY IN SAID BASE AND FORMING THEREWITH A CONTINUOUS PLUNGER CAVITY, AT LEAST ONE RIB ON THE OUTSIDE OF SAID COVER MEMBER ALIGNED WITH SAID RIB ON SAID MEMBER, A CHANNEL IN SAID RIB OF SAID COVER MEMBER IN ALIGNMENT WITH SAID CHANNEL IN SAID BASE MEMBER AND EXTENDING TO SAID FLANGE OF SAID COVER MEMBER, A PLUNGER RECIPROCALLY MOUNTED IN SAID CONTINUOUS PLUNGER CAVITY, CONTACT MEANS POSITIONED BY SAID PLUNGER FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH A LAMP, A RESILIENT ARM FOR MOUNTING SAID LAMPHOLDER RECEIVE IN SAID CHANNELS IN THE RIBS OF SAID COVER MEMBER AND SAID BASE MEMBER, AND A FASTENER SECURING SAID BASE MEMBER TO SAID COVER MEMBER AND ATTACHING SAID RESILIENT ARM TO SAID HOUSING. 